"If you are going to get boys to read, you must
recognize the things that make boys different," says librarian and educator
Michael Sullivan. Sullivan, author of the book "Connecting Boys with Books:
What Librarians Can Do" recently presented a workshop through the
Washington-Saratoga-Warren-Hamilton-Essex (WSWHE) BOCES on how to encourage
boys to read.

The seminar was attended by several Guilderland Central School District
librarians, who shared some of Sullivan's findings:

Did you know?

•
On average, boys read 1.5 years behind girls

• A
recent study showed that girls read 15.6 hours per week versus boys, who
typically read only about 2.3 hours per week

•
60% of A's in the classroom go to girls; 70% of D's and F's go to boys

•
80% of high school dropouts are male

Sullivan offered all educators, including parents, a
challenge: reach out to boys on their turf; that is, find out what makes
them tick and connect them with books that appeal to their interests.